Dental brace band for upper incisor teeth

ABSTRACT

An orthodontic band for the upper incisor teeth which have a concavely curved lingual surface has its lingual aspect thickened to prevent this aspect from being pulled away from the tooth by tension on the band for securing it around the tooth. The thickening is done with provision for forming a convexly curved portion closely conforming to the concavely curved lingual surface of the tooth to prevent an enlarged cement filled space between band and tooth to minimize cement washout from this space.

Ruff

[111 3,824,690 [45] July 23, 1974 DENTAL BRACE BAND FOR UPPER INCISOR TEETH [76] Inventor: Herbert L. Ruff, 2058 Genesee St., Utica, NY. 13502 [22] Filed: June 20, 1973 [21] Appl. No.: 371,776

[52] U.S. Cl 32/14 A [51] Int. Cl. A6lc 7/00 [58] Field of Search 32/14 A [56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 3,302,288 2/1967 Tepper 32/14 A 3,307,26l 3/1967 Steiner 32/14 A 3,526,961 9/1970 Kesling 32/14 A Primary Examiner-Robert Peshock Attorney, Agent, or Firm-Bruns & Jenney [5 7] ABSTRACT An orthodontic band for the upper incisor teeth which have a concavely curved lingual surface has its lingual aspect thickened to prevent this aspect from being pulled away from the tooth by tension on the band for securing it around the tooth. The thickening is done with provision for forming a convexly curved portion closely conforming to the concavely curved lingual surface of the tooth to prevent an enlarged cement filled space between band and tooth to minimize cement washout from this space.

4 Claims, 8 Drawing Figures lOq BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION This invention relates generally to an improved band to which a dental brace wire is adapted to be secured. In particular, it relates to a band for upper or maxillary incisors.

Prior art bands are made in the form of elliptical stainless steel open ended tubes of different sizes adapted to closely encircle teeth of different sizes, the band being applied around the crowns exterior of the gums. The bands are flexible, being commonly of a thickness of between six and nine thousandths of an inch and are secured to the tooth by cement.

A common problem in orthodontic practice is cement washout under the orthodontic bands often resulting in decay or a cavity under the band. The problem is most acute on the inner or lingual surfaces of the upper or maxillary incisors because these surfaces of the incisors are concave surfaces as distinguished from the generally convex surfaces of the other teeth and the labial surfaces of the incisors.

Presently available bands do not hold their adaptation to the lingual surfaces of the incisors because of their flexibility. This flexibility is desirable for other teeth but, for the incisors, the concavity of the lingual surfaces cause a tendency of the band to pull away from the tooth, the tendency increasing with the tension to which the band is subjected.

' SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The invention comprises eliminating the flexibility of the lingual aspect of the band by thickening this portion of the band. The thickening is accomplished so as to leave a convexly curved surface on the inner surface of the band adjacent the lingual surface of the incisor tooth which closely matches or conforms to the average curvature of the concave lingual surface of such teeth. The conformity of surfaces results in a thinner layer of cement between band and tooth which is useful in minimizing cement washout in this area.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a greatly enlarged plan view and FIG. 2 an end elevational view of an orthodontic band;

FIG. 3 is a plan view of a prior art band applied to an incisor tooth, shown in section;

FIG. 4 is a plan view of a band according to the invention showing a curved casting or metal added weld secured to the lingual surface of the lingual aspect of the band, the casting or weld being hatched for clarity;

FIG. 5 is a plan view of a modified form of band showing a curved casting or metal added weld secured to the labial surface of the lingual aspect of the band, the casting or weld being hatched for clarity;

FIG. 6.is a plan view of another modified form of band showing the band formed integrally thickened along its lingual aspect by extrusion of the band or otherwise; and

FIGS. 7 and 8 are plan views of further modified forms of bands thickened along the lingual aspect by securing a plurality of thin plates or laminations therealong, FIG. 7 showing the plates secured to the lingual surface of the aspect and FIG. 8 showing the plates se- 2 cured to the labial surface of the lingual aspect of the band, a tooth being shown in section.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Referring to FIGS. 1, 2 and 3, a prior art band 10 has the usual bracket 11 secured by welding or otherwise to the labial aspect of the band adapting it for securing thereto the brace wire. In FIG. 3the band 10 is shown secured around an incisor tooth 12, shown in section.

In FIG. 3, a space 13 is shown between the lingual aspect 14 of the band and the concave lingual surface 15 of the incisor tooth 12. This space must be filled with cement and is caused by the tension on the lingual aspect 14 of the band when the band is fitted tightly around the tooth.

Whether the cement is attacked by saliva in, the mouth or whether it is dislodged by physical motion, it is known that cement washout is greater in the space 13 than anywhere else along the band where the band is narrowly spaced from the tooth.

Referring to FIG. 4, a band 10a according to the invention, has its lingual aspect 14 stiffened by welding thereto a stiffeningsection 16, shown hatched. This section 16 may be formed of the added metal of the weld or a cast section 16 may be added and secured to the lingual aspect 14 by welding or soldering. Preferably the outer or lingual surface from point X to point Y is substantially flat as shown.

Referring to FIG. 5, the modified form of band 10b is stiffened by adding a section 16' of weld or cast material to the inner surface of the labial aspect 14.

Referring to FIG. 6, the modified form of band 10c is integrally thickened at 17, as shown. The thickened portion 17 may be provided by extruding the band 100 in a direction parallel to the length of the tooth or otherwise formed.

Referring to FIG. 7, the modified form of band 10d is stiffened at its lingual aspect 14 by welding or otherwise securing a plurality of thin plates or laminations 18 to the lingual surface of aspect 14, the plates being of different sizes and with ends staggered as shown to conform generally to the shape of the added portion 16 shown in FIG. 4.

Referring to FIG. 8, the modified form of band We is stiffened by securing a plurality of thin plates or laminations 19 to the inner surface of aspect 14, the plates being of different sizes and with ends staggered as shown to conform generally to the shape of added portion 16' shown in FIG. 5. It will be noted that the spaces at the ends of plates 19 between the plates and the lingual surface 15 of tooth 12 are considerably smaller than the space 13 shown in FIG. 3 and may successfully be filled with cement which will resist cement washout because of the minimal size of the cement filled spaces.

I claim:

1. An orthodontic band for an upper incisor, lingually concave tooth adapted to be secured under substantially circular tension around the crown of the tooth, the labial aspect of the band being relatively thin and flexible for permitting shaping of the band during installation to assume a generally convex adaptation to the labial surface of the tooth, the lingual aspect of the band being thickened to be relatively inflexible and adapted to assume and maintain an inwardly convex adaptation to the lingual concavity of the tooth during use by the wearer.

2. The orthodontic band defined in claim 1 wherein the thickened lingual aspect of the band comprises a solid metal insert secured to the lingual aspect of the band, the metal insert and the lingual aspect being shaped to provide a convexly curved surface adapted to abut and closely conform to the concavity of the lingual surface of the tooth.

3. The orthodontic band defined in claim 1 wherein the thickened lingual aspect of the band comprising a plurality of thin metal laminations secured together and curved surface adapted to abut and closely conform to the concavity of the lingual surface of the tooth.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE. CERTIFICATE OF CORRECTION Patent No. 3,824,690 Dated Jilly 23, 1974 Inv nwfl Herbert L. Ruff It is certified that error appears in the aboveidentified patent and that said Letters Patent are hereby corrected as shown below:

In claim 3, line 11," the word "comprising" should be comprises """.i I

Signed and sealed this 5th day of November 1974.

(SEAL) lAttest:

MCCOY M. GIBSON JR. C. MARSHALL DANN Attesting Officer Commissioner, of Patents FORM PC2-1050 (10-69) USCOMM-DC GOS'IG-PGQ 

1. An orthodontic band for an upper incisor, lingually concave tooth adapted to be secured under substantially circular tension around the crown of the tooth, the labial aspect of the band being relatively thin and flexible for permitting shaping of the band during installation to assume a generally convex adaptation to the labial surface of the tooth, the lingual aspect of the band being thickened to be relatively inflexible and adapted to assume and maintain an inwardly convex adaptation to the lingual concavity of the tooth during use by the wearer.
 2. The orthodontic band defined in claim 1 wherein the thickened lingual aspect of the band comprises a solid metal insert secured to the lingual aspect of the band, the metal insert and the lingual aspect being shaped to provide a convexly curved surface adapted to abut and closely conform to the concavity of the lingual surface of the tooth.
 3. The orthodontic band defined in claim 1 wherein the thickened lingual aspect of the band comprising a plurality of thin metal laminations secured together and secured to the lingual aspect of the band, the laminations and the lingual aspect being shaped to provide a substantially convexly curved surface adapted to conform to the concavity of the lingual surface Of the tooth.
 4. The orthodontic band defined in claim 1 wherein the thickened lingual aspect of the band is integrally formed with the band and shaped to provide a convexly curved surface adapted to abut and closely conform to the concavity of the lingual surface of the tooth. 